Tenants were managing to stay on top of their rental payments quite well in January, new data from Your Move and Reeds Rains shows.
The proportion of rents in arrears for the month was only 6.8 per cent, which is the lowest level since November 2013.
In December, rents in arrears still accounted for 8.9 per cent of all rents and in January 2014 the proportion was 7.4 per cent.
There has been an improvement in tenant finances over the past five years. According to the figures, the proportion of rents in arrears in January 2010 was 11.1 per cent.
“Just as years of joblessness dealt a devastating blow to tenant finances, the current rate at which people are being pipelined into employment is a tonic for levels of rent in arrears. In the future we will look back at these economic conditions and recognise that buy-to-let investors have ‘never had it so good’. It’s good news for tenants, it’s good news for landlords, and it’s good news for the economy,” Adrian Gill, director of estate Reeds Rains and Your Move agents, said.